Sonos Announces New Speakers and Details Recovery from 2024 App Issues
Sonos has announced two new audio products, the portable Sonos Play speaker and the microphone-free Era 100 SL. The announcements coincide with CEO Tom Conrad detailing the company's recovery from a problematic 2024 app update that affected multi-room systems and led to leadership changes.
New Product Announcements
Sonos Play
The Sonos Play is a new portable speaker positioned between the existing Roam 2 and Move 2 models in Sonos's lineup. It is priced at $299 in the US and CAD $399.99 in Canada.
- Design & Durability: The speaker measures 7.6 inches tall, 4.4 inches wide, and 3 inches deep, weighing under 3 pounds. It features a removable plastic grab loop for portability and carries an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance.
- Audio & Features: It contains two tweeters angled at 90 degrees for stereo separation, one mid-woofer, and two passive radiators. It includes Automatic Trueplay tuning technology to adjust sound to its environment. Controls on the top include play/pause, volume, and a microphone toggle.
- Connectivity & Battery: The speaker supports Wi-Fi 6 for integration into Sonos multi-room systems and Bluetooth 5.3 for use outside a home network. A new feature allows grouping up to four Play or Move 2 speakers via Bluetooth. It includes a line-in/USB-C/Ethernet port, with adapters sold separately. Battery life is stated to be 24 hours, and it comes with a wireless charging dock. The USB-C port can also function as a power bank to charge other devices.
Era 100 SL
The Era 100 SL is a new version of the Era 100 speaker without built-in microphones. It is priced at $189 in the US and $289 in Australia, which is $30 less than the standard Era 100 model. Sonos states it is acoustically identical to the Era 100 and can be used for stereo pairing with it.
Both the Sonos Play and Era 100 SL are available for pre-order, with general availability and shipping scheduled to begin on March 31.
Company Background: 2024 App Update and Leadership Changes
In May 2024, Sonos released a major update to its mobile app. According to company statements, this update led to issues for some users of multi-room speaker systems, including features becoming unavailable, volume controls malfunctioning, and sleep timers disappearing.
The company acknowledged these issues resulted in customer dissatisfaction and a slowdown in sales.
In January 2025, former CEO Patrick Spence stepped down. Tom Conrad, a Sonos board member since 2017, assumed the role of interim CEO at that time and was appointed permanent CEO in July 2025.
Recovery Strategy Under CEO Tom Conrad
Since taking leadership, Conrad implemented a series of changes aimed at addressing software performance. These efforts, described as a methodical turnaround, included leadership adjustments, the elimination of some management layers, and the discontinuation of certain company programs. The product organization was restructured to establish dedicated software teams.
The company released over 50 software updates in 2025 focused on improving platform reliability.
Conrad identified three factors that contributed to the 2024 app issues: a significant alteration to the app's user experience, launching without full feature parity with the previous app, and a lack of complete understanding of how the software would perform across diverse home networks.
Reported Current Performance and Future Outlook
Recent company statements note an improvement in internal platform performance metrics and a positive shift in customer sentiment within online communities. Sonos's share price has increased by 16% over the past year.
Conrad's stated strategy involves refocusing the company on the "Sonos sound system for the home" as its core product.
Looking ahead, he has mentioned a potential future role for Sonos as an agnostic platform for conversational AI agents within the home. His stated immediate focus is on ensuring product functionality and system reliability for the next 18 to 24 months.